Have they cancelled Mr T's passports yet?

So was Thaksin. each time:1. PDP, 2. under Chavalit, 3. TRT - all appointed positions - which seat did he hold?

He was elected prime minister

I thought the 1992 protests resulted in the prime minister having to be an MP when there was a parliament. Is that no longer a requirement? It's possible, though, that Thaksin became an MP via a party list. However, that would seem a fully legitimate route for a party leader.

Funny that he was promoted by Thaksin's unphotogenic cousin from being lowly consul-general is a small country to be ambassador to London, one of the most important positions in the Foreign Ministry.

Ambassador in London is hardly one of the most important positions....

Its the hub of shopping, well judging by the amount of Asian faces I spotted yesterday in Harrods.

I hope you made sure they didn't steal anything.

So was Thaksin. each time:1. PDP, 2. under Chavalit, 3. TRT - all appointed positions - which seat did he hold?

He was elected prime minister

Is that so hard to understand. One is normally either appointer or elected. Mussolini was appointed , Thaksin was elected. Strewth.

This shouldn't be this hard.

Elected by other MPs - not by the people - so how does that make him the most successful politician when he has never won a single seat - and the only one he stood for, he lost??? Is THAT so hard to understand? Being "Invited" into a job by other MPs is only semantically an "election" - in fact PDP he was appointed (invited - no election) and same again un Chavalit - as PM in TRT coalition (his own party TRT - but he never stood for a seat), which won by a land slide (TRT only 2 votes short of control - land slide with coalition partners), he is "elected" by them same set of MPs that did have the bottle to stand for a seat - so, given the number of seats they had collectively, how is that different from an appointment?

Do you understand anything of how the Thai system works?

Has the current PM in Thailand been elected? Mussolini was appointed with no parliamentary vote.

This is a multi layer constitutional monarchy, not a presidential system. Is the current pm of the UK elected or apppointed?

Strewth.

Thank god Thailand doesnt have a presidential system. Short of that, how much more democratically electee would you have liked any PM to be put in position in Thailand. I am all for revisionism, but let's not now pretend that Thaksin wasn't democratically elected.

We've been over this 1000 times. Even Abhisit was democratically appointed by pretty sneaky means.

Abhisit never managed to get in during a general election though. That is a massive difference. So anyone think thasins party with him as leader wouldn't win an election tomorrow?

As you brought up the UK - the Prime Minister IS an MP. S/He has been voted in to their seat. The Thai system allows for appointed PMs that have never been in any way sanctioned by the voting populous. Abhisit was an MP by the way - when he was elevated to PM. The case remain that one can hardly call someone a popular MP when they have never won a single seat - ever - and the only time they did stand, they lost. This was my point, no matter how you try to squirm out of it.

Can the MODS please get rid of all posts relating to direct flights between London and Bangkok?

how long until the military cronies realise how much money they can make from being in power and the corruption machine starts up again...